Doubts
by Miran Anders
Summary: After a long case, Peter feels the strain of being the dependable one, instead of the charming one. A one-shot.


Peter was exhausted.

At least, he told himself, he would never have said what he did, no matter how quietly or sarcastically, if he wasn't exhausted. And he never should have agreed to go out with the office crew for a drink after finally completing the successful stake out. As it was, Neal looked at him after he said it, his eyes wide. The con man glanced along the bar, making sure they weren't being overheard in the general happy hour buzz, and spoke quietly in return.

"_What_?"

Agent Burke tried to pretend it never happened. "What what?"

Neal shook his head. "Don't give me that. You think Elizabeth – what, _likes_ me? Is that really what you think? That can't be what you think."

Peter exhaled loudly and sipped his beer. "That is not what I said." He stared at his glass, and hindsight told him that trying to rehydrate with a tall craft brew after 15 – no, wait… 26 hours of being awake, with only one donut and a happy meal (compliments of Neal) in the last 12 hours was probably not the best plan. "I said… I don't remember what I said. But it's not important."

"You said, I believe, that you think 'El is attracted' to me." His eyes stayed on Peter, concern clouding the blue. What his friend had actually said was that he was 'afraid' El was attracted, but there was no way he was repeating that. "Elizabeth is crazy about you. You two are amazing. Why would you think she was interested in me?"

The FBI agent glanced at him briefly, and, unable to return the clear strength of that gaze, looked into his beer once more. He took a long swallow and tried to sound sharp and sarcastic. It only lasted for a few words. "Oh, come on, Neal. Why wouldn't she be. You're more sophisticated, better looking, probably even…" realizing he was beginning to sound pathetic, he stopped. Finishing off his glass, he mumbled, "Whatever." He blinked a few more times. "I really am tired." Neal looked at him, his concern growing.

"I'll drive you." Caffrey pulled out his wallet as Peter managed to call goodnight to his staff without arousing any suspicion as to his state of mind, and threw some bills on the bar. The younger man put a hand on Peter's shoulder, supporting him without being obvious. "Let's go."

Peter dozed on the drive home, while Neal considered what had been said at the bar. He had no doubt that Elizabeth loved her husband – but what could be making Peter even consider anything else? He stopped at a red light and glanced over at his partner, who mumbled something in his sleep and shifted slightly. It had to be one of the longest shifts he had experienced since becoming Peter's CI and partner. Although, when he thought about it, the last three weeks had been packed with tricky cases and long hours. When Peter was in charge, it seemed he never took a break. Everyone in the crew, even Neal, had grabbed an hour or two of sleep when they got fuzzy headed, assuming that Peter must have at some point… but now that Neal thought about it…

The light changed, and he drove the rest of the way to the Burke house. Elizabeth met them at the door. She smiled, before giving Peter a concerned look. "Oh, sweetheart. Are you all right?"

Her husband shrugged. "Yeah. Sorry, I'm just tired. Really, really tired."

"He only had one."

Elizabeth grinned at Neal's defense and looked at her husband sympathetically. "And no sleep. It's all right, Peter. Just go on up to bed. I'll be right there." He nodded, looking down, and headed for the stairs, and she called after him. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Fine," he mumbled, and trudged up to their bedroom. El shook her head and looked at Neal.

"Let me guess. He had a glass of scotch when the case closed."

"A tall beer, actually. But I'm not sure when he slept last."

She sighed, and glanced toward the stairs. "He does that. He's very devoted when he's on a case." Her gaze seemed a bit wistful before she looked back to Neal. "Thanks for getting him home."

"I'm just sorry I didn't notice he wasn't sleeping at all -"

"You wouldn't have been able to make him. And he wouldn't have been able to, if things were unfinished. You have no idea how much sleep you cost him, Mr. Caffrey." When her smile was only minimally returned, she frowned. "Hey... you okay to drive?"

Neal considered for a moment, and a thought occurred to him. "You know, I am pretty tired. Would you mind if I caught a couple hours on the couch? Since tomorrow's Saturday, the boss should give me some time off…"

Elizabeth laughed. "We do have a guest room, you know. Make yourself at home. I'm going to make sure he gets all the way to the bed." She put a hand on the young con man's shoulder. "Thank you." Leaning over, she gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Good night, Neal."

As she headed up the stairs after her husband, Neal looked after her thoughtfully. "No problem."

* * *

Neal woke early, slipped into the t-shirt and sweats that were still in the guest room from the last time he crashed there, and made his way quietly down to the family room. He looked over the bookcase and found an interesting-looking novel before settling down on the couch to wait.

He knew the Burke's morning schedule well enough by now, and assumed that even though Peter was hit hard last night, a good night's sleep would probably have him up at his usual time, which was, by Neal's involuntary noticing, ten to fifteen minutes after Elizabeth got downstairs, let the dog out, and put on the coffee. If he was going to pull off this minor scam, timing would be key.

Sure enough, he had only glossed over a few pages when he heard the soft steps of Elizabeth on the stairs. She was humming quietly to herself in a cheerful way that warmed his heart. It was good to have these people in his life, good to have some kind of normal family in spite of everything. The coffeemaker started, and he stood and glanced from the kitchen door to the stairs, timing himself carefully. "Now or never", he whispered, and walked silently into the kitchen.

His partner's wife was standing at the kitchen sink, looking out the window with a calm smile on her face. He put his arms around her from behind. "Good morning, beautiful."

El stiffened in his arms when she heard his voice, but living with an agent often put her in situations that demanded that she didn't react. "Good morning." She turned and looked into his eyes. "So… how are you this morning?"

"I'm better now that you're down here." He hugged her, and she glanced casually around the room and toward the stairs. She wasn't sure what was going on, but if they were being watched, if her husband was in any danger, and if this was Neal's way of protecting him…

"You do know that I'm not alone…"

"Oh, I'm not worried about him."

Elizabeth did her best not to look totally confused. If something was wrong, Neal was being completely mysterious about it. Abruptly, her eyebrows lifted and a slight look of fear crossed her face. "Neal… did Peter tell you to bring me any flowers?"

"Nope." He leaned toward her again. "No flowers needed. What's the matter, Elizabeth? Isn't this what we've always wanted? Why should we deny ourselves – " he leaned closer.

Elizabeth Burke placed her hands on Caffrey's chest. She stared for a moment into the clear blue eyes of the handsome con man, and abruptly shoved him across the room. For good measure she picked up a bottle of wine that was sitting on the counter and held it by the neck like a club. "All right, Neal, what the hell are you talking about? What's going on?"

He lifted his hands as she advanced on him. "I just thought maybe you and I could finally–"

"Finally what? Listen, Neal, I love you like a brother, but I will smash this bottle over your head if you don't tell me –"

"Don't kill him, El." Peter walked down the final stairs. "It's my fault. I think he was trying to prove a point."

"To whom?"

"To me." The FBI agent walked across the kitchen and gently disarmed his wife, setting the wine bottle back down on the counter. Then he turned and glared at Neal. "He knew I could hear everything you said. And it wasn't necessary."

Neal nearly spoke to him, then stopped and held a finger in the air. "Just a minute, Peter." He turned to Elizabeth and took her hand. "I apologize. I was, indeed, trying to prove a point to your husband, who has been working too hard and was far too tired last night." He brushed his lips formally across the back of her hand before releasing it. "Sorry if I embarrassed you." Neal turned and grabbed Satch's leash. "To atone for my sins, I'm going to walk the dog. I'll be a little while." He flashed them both a bright smile, and whistling cheerfully, left them alone.

Elizabeth stared after him, then turned slowly to look at her husband. "Peter?"

A rather sheepish FBI agent stared at the floor before slowly lifting his eyes to her. "I guess… well… what the…" He ran his hand back through his hair and leaned on the wall, looking at her. "I've been working a lot. I've been tired…. I guess maybe thoughts were building up in my head, and being so tired... I suppose I've been feeling kind of insecure."

"And you thought I – that I would –"

"Not that you would. But - _afraid_ that you might _want_ to. I mean, it seems every girl we run into wants him, is impressed with his brains and his sophistication and… " He had the grace to flush slightly. "I'm sorry, El."

Elizabeth stared at her husband for a long moment as he stood there, his eyes downcast. Finally she smiled. "I know how you feel."

Gentle brown eyes lifted quickly to look at her. "You do?"

"How hard do you think it was when I finally met the 'Diana' you kept talking about? Working with, spending so much time with…" She sighed. "It was rough, meeting this gorgeous, exotic, clearly skilled woman. Even still… sometimes…" she ended with a little shrug.

Peter's head jerked back and he almost smiled. "But _Diana_? – El, you know she has a girlfriend. Not just a significant other. A _girlfriend_."

"And Neal has girls all over, it seems. But it doesn't matter if she's interested in you or not… what I get afraid of, sometimes, is what you're interested in…"

He slumped back against the counter. "Wow."

"Yeah. Wow."

His expression became intensely serious. "I have no interest in Diana, El. You're the only one I've ever wanted."

El stepped closer, her hands resting on his shoulders. "And I don't want anyone, _anyone_, but you, Peter Burke. Do you understand that? And I especially don't want your would-be little brother who thinks it's fun to get into trouble. I don't care if everyone thinks he's so adorably boyish and smart. I prefer men." She kissed him softly. "One man, to be specific. One terribly handsome, charming, responsible and loving man. One I can trust."

He slipped his arms around her and drew her close. "I love you, El." Her eyes sparkled a smile as they leaned in to kiss.

After a few minutes Elizabeth tilted her head back and let him catch his breath, her eyes still smiling. "Do you believe me?"

Peter grinned sheepishly. "Yes, ma'am."

"Good." She ran a finger down his nose with a grin. "Because I think it's obvious you're still tired."

"Really?" Peter frowned slightly in confusion.

"Yes. It's terribly obvious. Which is why I'm taking you back to bed." She leaned in to kiss him again. "Now."

* * *

When Neal got back to the house, he looked around the kitchen briefly and smiled broadly. Hanging up the leash, he said, "I'm out of here, Satch." He put down the box of pastries on the counter next to the empty mugs, and, humming cheerfully, left to enjoy his day off.


End file.
